They stopped Big Ben on that final drive of the regular season game in Pittsburgh last year. And even then, it came down to an incompletion in the end zone on the last play of the game. Other than that, no clutch defensive stand really comes to mind. You can't just dismiss the failures in the past 2 AFC Championship games.
That's not fair to say they never make big stops. Against the Colts in the playoffs last year they stopped Peyton at the end holding the Colts to a 50 yard FG when if they picked up that last first down they could have ran out the clock before the game-winner. Then they didn't need to make a clutch stop at the end vs the pats because they dominated the entire game and shut down the best offense in the NFL. Then this year they made big end of game plays in the Cowboys game, and a big stop at the end of the Chargers game. It's not like they fuck up every single time..
The defense gets a pass in my books because you have to assume the Patriots will score points and move the ball at some point. That's a great offense, the chances of completely stifling that group are slim. The Pats D, however, is garbage. Three of their starters didn't even have an intro clip on the broadcast because they were pumping gas last week! Sanchez/Schitt failed to put up pts against a fucking pathetic group of scrubs and that's why they get the blame in my books. The defense held NE offense in check for the first half, collapsed in the second after some turnovers and the no huddle. Regardless, the offense should've bailed the D out that night vs a pathetic defense and couldn't.
The D collapsed at the end of the 1st half after we took a 9-6 lead, a fresh and rested D allowed NE to go 80 yds in just over a minute to completely change that game.
Our offense always struggles and our defense rarely does. In addition, the offense rarely ever has any effective drives that allow the defense to rest. You can't win football games if you can't put points up.
Don't care. There should be a margin for error when facing a D as bad as NEs... The Patriots offense is going to get points. Their weakness is D. Our offense was fucking pathetic against a horrible D and they are to blame for losing what was a close game for the most part. That game should've been a shoot out.
the rest excuse, I'm so sick of this. Our O controlled the clock all 1st half yet the D allowed an 80 yd TD drive in just over a minute to end the first half. For the game the TOP was about even, I am so sick of that excuse.
^ Agreed. The pats D is 32nd in the league. Why our offense couldnt put up more points is inexcusable. Our defense can only stop so much. Brady is one of the best to play the game and he will always put up points no matter what defense you throw at him. Ultimately, if the offense puts some scoring drives together, our defense would be less tired and more likely to make some key stops as oppossed to just collapsing
That bad NE D shut out the Giants in the first half a week earlier and only gave up 24 pts, they held Dallas to 16 pts, held us to 21 and 16, held Oak to 19, held SD to 21. The D is not as bad as people think, people get too caught up in the yards allowed # where they are 32nd but in the more important category of points allowed they are 16th- tied w/ the great NYJ defense.
the defense doesnt get a pass the defense is far better than our offense though. its not our defenses job to cover up for the constant missed throws, bad situational playcalling, and turnovers we commit. if anyone could tell me the defense is holding this team back more than the offense I would have to call you a certified idiot. Rex's problem is he needs to get an elite LB or at least prospect in the mix and stop jerking off to his DB's. he can scheme all he wants but without a true pass rush this defense will never be truly dominant.
They are also ranked 32nd in both yards allowed as well as passing yards. We should have been able to move the ball at will. You cant expect to win if your putting up 14 offensive points (2 points for the safety). Not to mention their secondary was banged up.
who cares about yards allowed? it's about points allowed. We threw for over 300 against them, we ran it well but we didn't score enough. They have a bend but don't break defense. as far as passing yds, that is mostly b/c teams are behind and have to pass. many of those yds are garbage time like sancgez's last 100 the other night. No one is saying the O is better than the D, the D is obviously the better unit(and should be), the problem is we are a D first teama nd when the D doesn't play well it hurts us more than when our O doesn't play well.
sure we are a defense first team but against teams like the pats your offense has to play up to its potential and not dick around and score 14 points. You dont win superbowls with a good defense and a mediocre offense. You have to be a solid team in all three phases. Just because the D is our priority doesnt make it somethign we should rely on. Score some points and help the defenses cause. Not scoring points just puts more pressure on them.
The O had the game at 9-6, it should have been that going into the half. Our O is usually a better 2nd half team, the D sapped all the momentum by allowing NE to go 80 yds in about a minute and take the lead moments after we scored a TD. Our D is GOOD, it's not a big time defense.
i know our D is good and not elite. But i also think eric smith's costly 15 yard penalty killed us. I think we would have limited them to 3 points if he wouldnt have given up that penalty but its a what if situation. People can argue Sanchez's time out was dumb because it allowed brady to get a shot before the half.
Still I think its unfair to expect the D to hold every offense to under 300 yds and 14 pts every game. The Pats are going to get pts.... They got 14 because of the offense (pick six, muffed punt).... The Jets would've beaten NE had they played complete football. Special teams and offense were doing jackshit while the D was holding NE in check. Then NE made adjustments (as expected) and the offense continued to do JACKSHIT against a porous D. I mean, what's the best way to beat surgeons like Brady, Brees, et al? Keep them off the fucking field. Don't worry, I know you disagree.
No one expected them to shut out the Pats O or hold them under 14 but that drive at the end of the 1st half was deflating and after we got it to w/in a TD in the 4th qtr they could have at least gotten one stop, right? O, D and STs were not good the other night. WE KEPT BRADY OFF THE FIELD FOR MOST OF THE 1ST HALF- How did that help w/ a minute to play at their own 20? Stop making excuses for the D.
So you're going to ignore an entire 60 minutes of offensive ineptitude because the D crumbled on the last drive of the first half, a drive that shouldn't have even happened if not for Sanchez doing "the stupidest thing in football history"? Hell, the defense even chipped in with a fucking safety. No, it wasn't a great game or even good game by the D but, for once in our fucking lives, there was a legit opportunity for the offense to take advantage of an average-to-poor D and they did NOTHING.
